San Diego, CA freight rates The Port of San Diego offers two maritime cargo terminals, and the community is working to increase capacity to balance export cargo with its abundant import freight. The port specializes in break-bulk and roll-on/roll-off cargoes. Its National City Marine Terminal handles the import and export of vehicles and heavy equipment, with a 140-acre on-dock facility that’s able to hold 120 railcars for automobile loading and unloading. The port’s terminals also handle windmill generator components from Japan and windmill products from Europe and South America, as well as fruit and dry goods. The San Diego County Regional Airport recently added direct service to London and Tokyo to increase cargo shipping opportunities to those markets. One service the region is lacking is rail. San Diego is served by stub-end service from one Class I carrier, and a short line connection to a Mexican carrier. Though new outlets are being investigated, the current Class I service is limited for freight because of the abundance of passenger trains using the local infrastructure.

Tampa, Florida freight rates The central Florida city of Tampa is home to the highly traveled Port Tampa Bay, the closest full service port to the Panama Canal. It handled more than 36 million tons of cargo in 2014 and is one of the world’s premier fertilizer ports. With major interstate systems I-4, I-75 and I-275 running through the region, Tampa is connected to major U.S. cities like Atlanta, Cincinnati, Orlando and Detroit, as well as to the Canadian border. The region offers 500 miles of active railroad and siding tracks, which maintains a major rail yard, an intermodal terminal, a TRANSFLO terminal and an automotive distribution center in Tampa. The region isn’t as affected by the tourism industry as other locations in Florida, but like other destinations in the Sunshine State, the summer citrus season can drive freight prices up. LTL shipping is usually affordable due to the volume of goods moving through the area via truck and rail.